The First Encounter
by taiyourshoes
Summary: Before Harry, when Voldemort's power was just rising, two in particular were able to survive his attacks, three times in fact. This is the story of Lily and James Potter in their first encounter with the Dark Lord. The first encounter they would survive..
1. Part I

Disclaimer: I do not claim to own any names, places, or things from the Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling.

* * *

The First Encounter  
  
Part One  
  
By: Taiyourshoes

* * *

"I've got my dance performance tonight, you coming?"  
  
Lily Evans stood in the kitchen of the small flat she shared with her boyfriend, who was in the bathroom down the hall doing whatever it was he did in the bathroom to look so completely fetching. Lily gave a yawn as she waited for his reply, running a hand through her disheveled, red hair as she did this. One of her legs were propped against the kitchen counter behind her, a habit her mother had always chided her on, and her attire left something to be desired.  
  
But it was a Friday, and it was morning, and that was really all the excuse for her less than fabulous exterior Lily felt she needed.  
  
She heard a door close at the end of the hall and footsteps drawing nearer to the kitchen. In seconds, James Potter appeared at the kitchen archway with a tired look on his face. His hazel eyes were squinted, as he was not wearing his glasses, in her direction. Despite this, he still looked positively fetching to Lily. It was, after all, HER boyfriend.  
  
"What'd you say, love?" he asked, rubbing his eyes slightly as if this would clear up the blurry picture before him.  
  
"My dance performance at that muggle... thing tonight. I was hoping you'd come to this one since it'll probably be my last performance, what with Auror training starting up again soon."  
  
Lily always had this feeling that she was bothering James when she asked him things like this, perhaps because he was never very interested, or perhaps because he was always very tired when she asked him.  
  
"I'll try, Lily, but if something comes up, you'll understand, right?"  
  
At that moment, Lily felt a lot like a little kid begging her dad to come to her sports game or recital. Really, Lily didn't like feeling that way with her boyfriend, who's interests in her seemed to have dwindled after all the attacks started up on muggles and wizards alike. But then again, even Lily hadn't felt like herself when a close friend of hers from school had her mother killed after being put under the Cruciatus curse. Or when her parents were murdered last summer.  
  
"Of course I'll understand," she said weakly, putting on a smile as she spotted his glasses on the table beside her. Picking them up, she walked towards him. "Here, you wouldn't want to lose these." Lily handed him his spectacles and left through the archway James was leaning against, down the hall and into the bathroom. She was feeling rather dark and gloomy again, as she had a lot lately, when she heard James's voice behind her.  
  
"Oh, and Lily?" James had put his glasses on and ran up to her, pulling her into a hug before she could protest. Evidently, he knew Lily better than she gave him credit for. He'd realized she was put off at the moment, in the least. "If you want me there, I'll do my absolute best to be there. But if I'm not..." he said the last bit with a certain amount of foreboding.  
  
"If you're not I'll be perfectly prepared to take down anything threatening to the wizarding and muggle world. Promise. You really don't have to worry about me, I doubt death eaters will be at a stupid performance anyways."  
  
Lily was used to his worry for her, but it was becoming a bit of a nuisance. Though, if he didn't worry about her as much as he did, Lily might start to believe he didn't even like her anymore, let alone love her. She had, in fact, been feeling that way for some time now. It always seemed like he was either avoiding her or had something to do rather than talk to her. Lily remembered when he'd been chasing after HER at school.  
  
"Just... just be careful, Lily." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair, staring at her through his glasses. "Even if I'm not there, I'll... I'll walk you home or... something, yeah?"  
  
"I can just Apparate—"  
  
"But I'd like to Lily. Wait for me after, okay? I'll see you." With that, he let go of the grip he'd had on her arm and walked towards the front door. "Duty calls, you know."  
  
Point in fact, Lily didn't know. She had no idea why his "ministry work" would keep him so long, or why she was feeling so lousy as of late.  
  
Sighing, she closed the bathroom door and began to get ready for a day of, hopefully, something to get her mind off of James Potter.

* * *

As 5 o'clock approached, Lily Evans could be found rummaging through her closet for the outfit she was to wear to her dance that night. Her hair was in place, her makeup was on, and her shoes were beside her bed, but her costume was a sort of mystery to her. She never could find things when she wanted to.  
  
Lily heard a loud, POP behind her. Before she could turn to see who it was that had Apparated into her room, the voice belonging to that person rang out. "Not ready yet, Evans?"  
  
Lily smiled and shook her head. She really needn't turn around now, seeing as she knew very well who it was already.  
  
"You really shouldn't be Apparating into people's bedrooms, Sirius. It could get you into trouble one of these days."  
  
She did glance behind her then, noticing her and James's close friend and future best man at their wedding (should they have one) smiling congenially at her as he flopped onto her bed.  
  
"Yes, well I figured you wouldn't be able to change anyways, seeing as your outfit is in the living room."  
  
"Is it?" She made a face. "Oh, I left it out there when it was delivered, didn't I?"  
  
Lily got up off her knees, as she'd been digging through her shoe rack for her costume (for no real reason except she didn't no where else to look), and began to walk towards the door. Before she could get past her bed Sirius grabbed her wrist gently. "I'm coming along to your performance, you see. James told me that if he couldn't be there, I had to fend all those blokes off his girl." Sirius winked at her. "He's a prat, I know it."  
  
Lily smiled, knowing he was joking and full aware that James was probably worried there'd be another attack that she couldn't handle herself in. James had never been jealous that there'd be another man--He was pretty attuned to the fact that Lily was positively in love with him.  
  
"I'll see you there then, Sirius, but I have to get ready now, I think—"  
  
But before she could even finish her sentence, Sirius relinquished his grip on her wrist, rolled over, and Disapparated.  
  
Shaking her head, she started out to the living room to get her attire.

* * *

"Ah, Evans, he was probably out there the whole time," Sirius soothed on the curb outside the performing arts center. The sun had already set and a few light posts, spread out along the walkway, cast the only light on the street. "We just didn't see him."  
  
Lily was leaning against the wall, clutching her bag to her in quiet brooding. "I don't think so. But," she sighed, "he would have been here if he could have."  
  
"That's the spirit," Sirius put on a cheery falsetto. "But, uh, if you want to, you can Apparate to my place and we can wait for James there. In case he stays out a little late or something." Lily noted that Sirius was looking rather uncomfortable.  
  
"He isn't cheating on me, is he?" Lily asked disbelievingly.  
  
Sirius looked abashed. "Of course not, Lily! I've never seen a guy more gaga for ANYONE. But yeah, work does keep him."  
  
Lily considered boxing her friend square in the jaw. "Yeah? What kind of work? The thing you BOTH have failed to do is tell me anything as of late." She stared darkly at him.  
  
Sirius sighed and got up from his place beside her, reaching his hand out to help her to her feet. "I'll Apparate home with you. We can play... chess or something. I'll let you win." He said the last bit as if that would be the clincher.  
  
Lily shook her head. "James told me to wait here, and I intend to." Softening her tone as Sirius retracted his hand, she whispered, "Thanks for coming, Sirius."  
  
He smiled. "Anytime."  
  
Lily put her head to her knees and heard a loud POP as Sirius Disapparated. After that, the only sound she could hear was the distant hum of cars on the next road.  
  
She really hadn't done so badly. At the performance, that is. Although she'd never loved dancing, she found it a wonderful distraction for all the things wrong in her life: her parents' death when faced with a death eater, her sister's newfound hate for the wizarding world, and the constant news of murder and destruction in the Dark Lord's wake.  
  
Voldemort had changed everything about her world, which included both the muggle world she was born into and the wizarding world she'd found, and tore apart families all around her—Including her own.  
  
It was for this reason that she decided she wanted to pursue a career as an Auror: She wanted to be on the inside of the fight against Voldemort, to help stop the terror and the horrors rising in her life. She couldn't just sit by and hope for the best. She had to stand up and face the evil head on.  
  
And if she died? Well, what was death when compared to the death of those you love?  
  
As if to end her thoughts there, Lily heard footsteps approaching—Three pairs of footsteps coming directly at her. Her head snapped up and she saw, to her instant foreboding, three dark figures walking towards her. There faces were hidden in shadow.  
  
"Lily Evans," the middle figure said icily in acknowledgment rather than question. The two figures beside him were taller and broader and certainly more menacing. But the greasy voice that flowed through the man in the middle sent chills running up and down her spine.  
  
"Hello," she got to her feet, thinking only of the wand in her back pocket. The figures were only feet from her now, but she couldn't see them well enough to determine whom they were or what it was they were holding, for they were definitely holding something. The glare of the street lamp behind them obscured her vision spectacularly.  
  
"We have a delivery for you," the man continued, saying his words slowly as if she wouldn't be able to understand otherwise. He glanced at the other two as if he was telling a funny joke. They laughed.  
  
Lily didn't find it nearly as funny, however.  
  
"A delivery from who?" She allowed no emotion to escape her lips. Her months of Auror training had taught her at least that. "Don't let the enemy know when you're afraid." And Lily was afraid, but not of these men, but of whatever it was they were holding. Whatever it was, it was giving off a sort of cold, horrible vibration, as if it was much more than a small shape in the dark. She felt the fear it spread down to her toes and throughout her mind.  
  
The men exchanged looks with each other, though all Lily could see were three dark figures moving their heads to share a bit of a snicker. "Oh, someone you've been _dying_ to hear from."  
  
Lily's stomach turned to ice instantly. They were holding that object out to her, the one that was chilling her bones and terrifying her out of her wits.  
  
Slowly she reached out to clasp the object. It was hidden in shadow but she could fell where it was. When she clutched it she the object pierce the skin of her finger. There were thorns.  
  
"They're roses, Lily Evans. From James Potter, telling you to meet him over there." Lily looked up from her bleeding finger, still clutching the bouquet of red roses in her clean hand, to see the men each gesturing towards the end of the street where there stood a telephone booth.  
  
"There?" She squinted her eyes, though she was careful to keep a watch on the three men. Were they muggles or wizards? Could she hex them if necessary? And if they were delivering a message from James when he was only a few yards away, why didn't James just do so himself?  
  
The men laughed cruelly. "See for yourself."  
  
As if automatically, Lily began to walk towards the phone booth. Her heart pounded in her ears as she watched her feet move left, right, left... Was she telling them to do that?  
  
"James?" she called out, her voice still not betraying her. She said his name evenly, curiously, though she was sure he wouldn't call back out to her. Finally, her feet stopped.  
  
Slowly, Lily watched her hand, ghostly white in the light of the street lamp, reach toward the edge of the phone booth. She peered behind it.  
  
However, she did not find James Potter, as she suspected. Instead, there was a lone, wooden stool placed conspicuously on its legs. This stool, too, gave her an ominous feeling. Her insides changed from ice to lead. She felt sick.  
  
Hands still wrapped around the bouquet, Lily turned to look at the men back at the curb. But to her surprise and horror, they were standing directly behind her, hoods drawn over their faces.  
  
"Didn't find him, then?"  
  
Their wands (so they were wizards!) were raised at her. She could feel them all pointed at her heart.  
  
On impulse Lily reached behind her and, using the hand not clutching the bouquet, grabbed the stool and swung it at them. The stool lifted from the sidewalk and made contact with the man on the left's shin, but he gave no sign that this had hurt.  
  
"Was he not under the stool, either?" one laughed.  
  
But Lily took off before she could hear any more of their pointless banter. She was running down the street, preparing to take cover and get out her wand—do something to rid herself of the three men she was sure were death eaters—when she felt the bouquet of flowers in her hand turn as cold as the blood running in her veins.  
  
She looked down and saw that the roses, once red, had turned black and were beginning to diminish into nothing more than dust, which fell from her hand and trailed her as she ran. It as her pursuer, her enemy, her threat, and her real source of fear.  
  
When she turned the corner she found two gates. These gates were both swinging open and closed, teasing her. Which to choose? Which to choose? The dust of the flowers was on her tail, as were the death eaters. Which to choose?  
  
Lily felt a stinging in her hand where the roses had stabbed at her as she drew out her wand and made for the door on the right. She heard laughter behind it, a kind, child's laugh. That made her stop dead. She couldn't lead death eaters to a child. In that moment's hesitation, the men caught up with her. They were right behind her, grabbing at her back. Lily shot a blast from her wand behind her, which stopped the grabbing, before charging at the swinging gate to the left. She felt tears starting to form in her eyes and her heart beat faster.  
  
_Thump, thump, thump!  
_  
Her hands fumbled with the gate as she got to the other side of it, trying to close it, unable to close it; desperate to close it, desperate to run. The men on the other side were pushing it open again, calling her names, laughing at her.  
  
In a dizzy confusion, Lily stumbled back and shot a curse over the gate, which she was finally able to slam closed. "Stupefy, stupefy, stupefy!" She heard all three men go silent, though she was sure her spells hadn't caught them.  
  
Stepping in reverse, Lily processed her situation. There was only one light in the tiny enclosure she put herself in. Roses covered the fences around her, the fences which seemed to be growing towards the sky every moment, ripping at the sky, taking away her sanity.  
  
_Thump, thump, thump!  
_  
There was no way out except through the way she came.  
  
The dust seeped through the fence and stopped before her, falling to the ground in a heap. From that heap rose the head of a snake, followed by a body, a rattle. Liy's eyes widened and her grip on her wand grew tighter.  
  
The snake's eyes glowed red with malice. It hissed, fangs visible from the corners of its mouth. Would it bite her?  
  
_Thump, thump, thump!_  
  
The snake began to hiss out words Lily couldn't understand. Whatever it was saying, it sounded like nothing good. Suddenly, she could feel invisible ropes coiling around her, which she struggled against, tried to curse away but couldn't. She tried to Apparate, but she could do nothing from the confines of the ropes. And all the while, the walls around her got taller and taller and taller...  
  
"Lily Evansss" the snake hissed. "You know things the Dark Lord wishesss to know. You hold one of the keysss to the heart of His growing threat. He wishesss to know all that you have to offer, and he may ssspare your life." The snake's eyes were level with her own, piercing into her mind.  
  
For a moment, Lily felt as though she might tell the snake anything (even though she knew nothing of what the snake spoke of), but a voice in her head told her to close off her mind, that Voldemort was trying to take hold of her thoughts, her memories, her secrets.  
  
"There are worse things than death," Lily said, hardening. "Kill me, for I have nothing to give you or," she bristled, "your _master_."  
  
"Ah," the snake nodded, "your friend said the same, before we killed him."  
  
Lily's stomach squirmed. "Which friend would that be?" She made sure she said her words evenly, so the fear she was feeling would not escape her lips and reveal her greatest fear to the Dark Lord--Her fear of losing everyone dearest to her. If he knew that, he might just get the information he wanted from her. Maybe.  
  
"Jamesss Potter, the one you share a home with."  
  
Lily bit her bottom lip. The bottoms of her feet were tingling as if too much blood was trying to beat all over her at once. Her nose stung as tears threatened to erupt. But James couldn't be dead, she'd know if he were dead. She'd know.  
  
_Thump... thump... thump..._  
  
"Tell _Voldemort_ he died for a worthy cause." The words burned like acid in her mouth. She just wanted to smash the snake beneath her tingling feet. She wanted to feel it die at her hands more than anything she'd ever wanted before.  
  
Except for James to still be alive. She wanted that most.  
  
"Do NOT ssspeak his name, mudblood. Your lips are unworthy." The snake seemed to be growing now, getting broader, taller, and more human-like by the second. He was transforming into his true form. The form of Lord Voldemort. In moments, Lily's green eyes saw only a skinny, dark robed man before her. His eyes glowed red like he had as a snake. "Do not speak my name, Lily Evans, with your dirty tongue."  
  
Lily was still at first, too surprised to do anything more, but she soon felt a sort of brash rage take her. "You know nothing of anything in the world, if you can't see that killing all those innocent people is wrong. So who are you to say what I am? Who are you to declare me dirty?"  
  
Lord Voldemort let out a condescending laugh that echoed throughout the fenced enclosure. Lily could no longer see the tops of the fence; it extended too far into the sky.  
  
"I, the most powerful wizard of the century, know nothing of the world? That's wrong, mudblood. I know more than you'll ever understand. I know there is only power in the world, and those who are smart enough to take it, and those who stand in the way of it. You, Lily Evans, are too ignorant to see that you are standing in the way of everything I've worked for. Now give me the whereabouts of Albus Dumbledore, give me his plans, give me his strategies; I must know these things and YOU must tell me."  
  
Voldemort had his wand pointed at her chest.  
  
"Well that's too bad. See, I have NO idea where Dumbledore is, nor do I know what he's planning, or if he's palnning something at all. And even if I did, I'd never tell you anything. Torture me, kill me if you like, but I still shant say a word! But I hope he is planning on taking you down, and I hope he succeeds!"  
  
Voldemort appeared to grow very angry. As if in slow motion, Lily saw Lord Voldemort's mouth begin to form the incantation she knew would send her deep into a pain greater than she'd ever known. She struggled against the ropes binding her, she willed her wand, which had only just stayed in her possession at her side as her hands were thrust down and tied, to do something to save herself.  
  
"Crucio!"  
  
"Protego!" she deflected. It bounced back at him, but a silver shield appeared around him and the spell dissipated.  
  
"Quick thinking, but that won't save you for long," Voldemort scolded. "Don't play games; I know you have all the information your boyfriend had," he smiled maliciously, "before we killed him."  
  
"YOU DIDN'T!" Lily erupted before she could stop herself. "I'd know if he's dead and he's not!"  
  
Voldemort peered closer into her eyes, which she squinted so he wouldn't get a good look. "Ah..." The Dark Lord said thoughtfully, placing his wand directly on her throat, "you'd know would you? Then tell me, where is he now? Why isn't he coming to your rescue? Why hasn't he told you anything about the Order?"  
  
Lily had been thinking of the answers to his questions before Voldemort mentioned the Order. She froze. "The Order?"  
  
"The Order, developed by Albus Dumbledore, as the lead defense against myself. James Potter is one of the members, I learned recently, and I assumed you were as well. From what your mind tells me, however," he grinned as Lily silently chided herself for letting him get into her mind, "you've never even heard of the Order. I know it will only be a matter of time, though." Voldemort lowered his wand. "Now I have a proposition for you: Join the Order and act as my spy; if you do, I shall spare your life. If you don't, you will be killed."  
  
"Don't you get it?" Lily spat. "I don't care if you kill me; I'd die before betraying my friends or Albus Dumbledore; I'd die before helping you! It is because of you that I haven't any parents and that my sister hates magic! It's because of you that people are afraid to come home at night, scared to see the dark mark looming over their roofs to show that someone inside has been murdered by the likes of you!"  
  
Voldemort wasn't smiling anymore. "Don't babble, mudblood. If you have nothing to offer me, I will have to kill you... But I promise, it will be quick and perhaps painless. After all, I don't have time to waste on you any more than I have."  
  
Again the slow motion had taken affect. He was raising his wand for the second time, his mouth forming words that were only talked about with the utmost fear.  
  
This would be it; her life would be over in just a second. All the things she'd worked for, all those years she'd spent in school, all that time James had spent trying to win her over at Hogwarts, would be for nothing. She'd be dead, erased, deleted from the planet by the same man who'd torn apart her family.  
  
And she'd never, ever see James again.  
  
Well, she couldn't let that happen.  
  
Lily stuck up her chin. "You're going to kill me while I'm tied up, unable to defend myself? You can't take me when both of my hands are free, eh? What, afraid to duel?"  
  
Voldemort seemed pleasantly surprised in the simplest terms. After a moment he let out another of his manic laughs. "I will not be denounced by a mudblood with a statement as untrue as that one." With a flick of his wand, the ropes were gone. Lily stumbled a moment, trying to find her balance when her legs weren't bound together.  
  
"Now, good-bye, Lily Evans. I hope you're free hands can help you. Avada Kedavra!"  
  
The green light shot from the end of his wand, pointed directly at her. Instantly, she dodged out of the way. "Stupefy!" she retalliated.  
  
Again, her spell was turned useless by a silver shield. Voldemort seemed to enjoy this. "Not many have EVER dodged Avada Kedavra, before. Most are too scared to even think, let alone move. You must REALLY want to live."  
  
"If only to help to defeat you—Stupefy!" She was hoping to catch him off guard, but the silver shield came up again. And with the shield, something else did. Right behind Voldemort something, or rather soemone, had appeared.  
  
"Show some creativity. What will stunning do anyways? Hold me back a second?"  
  
But Lily didn't answer. She wasn't listening. Instead, she was staring at the place behind Voldemort where a blurry image of James was standing.  
  
"Why, hello, Mr. Riddle. Can I take your coat?"  
  
Voldemort didn't seem to have noticed the nineteen-year-old boy behind him, but instead was taking an annoyance with Lily.  
  
"Don't care to talk? Okay, just duel then. Crucio!"  
  
Lily drew her eyes away from James as she attempted to dodge the curse again, but she realized it was too late even before she began. She closed her eyes, readied herself for the blow...  
  
But it didn't come. She felt a hand close around her arm and Apparate her to a different spot in the enclosure, behind Voldemort this time. When she opened her eyes she saw James beside her, but it seemed only she could see him.  
  
"Move, Lily. Apparate. You can only Apparate within these walls, but you _must_ dodge the unforgivable curses, any curses. Dumbledore and I are on the way."  
  
With that, he disappeared.

* * *

Taiyourshoes: This fic is based off a nightmare I had. And yes, I did wake up screaming. You would too if mad men were chasing after you with wands and shadowy figures. Shudders At any rate, I just felt inspired to record my mind's awanderings in a fic explaining Lily and James's first encounter with THE DARK LORD, as I see so few of those out there... Or perhaps I'm not looking well enough.  
  
I planned to make this all just a one shot, but at about one or two yesterday morning, I realized there was just no way this would all fit in one clean chapter. So I've decided to split it into (hopefully) two parts. Maybe three...  
  
This being my FIRST EVER fic outside of all things humorous and fluffy, I'd much appreciate reviews to tell me what I'm doing wrong, right, or if I'm doing anything right at all. See you soon, after I've finished writing part two. ;) 


	2. Part II

Disclaimer: I do not claim to own any names, places, or things from the Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling.

* * *

The First Encounter

Part One

By: Taiyourshoes

* * *

Lily's heart pounded harder in James's absence. She felt a little more panicked, but her will to escape had only been strengthened. She gripped her wand more tightly still in front of her, and whipped around in time to block another curse by the Dark Lord.

"Ah, so you finally figured out that you can Apparate within these walls, eh? It will only prolong your inevitable death, Mudblood, and waste both my time and yours. Serpensortia!"

Lily watched, aghast, as a long black snake shot out of it, fell heavily onto the ground between them, and raised itself, ready to strike. Its ruby eyes sparkled and mesmerized her as she was trapped in a world of fear.

"Developing a phobia of snakes, are you, Lily Evans? It's okay, you won't feel anything—not fear, nor anxiety, nor hate—in but a moment. Let your death serve as a lesson to those who do not shudder at the sound of my name! Strike!"

The snake sprung up at her in a moment, and a moment later it lay dead on the floor. Lily's wand had sent sparks at the snake in Lily's distress, and before she knew what she was doing, her wand was plunged through the snakes neck and up through its head. She dropped her wand when she felt the first ooze of blood drip off it and onto her hand.

"Stupefy!"

Lily paid for her moment of indecision; she felt her whole body become stiff as if she were frozen in a wall of cement. Her lips grew cold. Her eyes closed. Her heart raced on.

"Have you ever heard that the Dark Lord never fails in killing someone once he has his mind set on doing so? Unfortunate it is, that you forgot this fact. Goodbye, Lily Evans. Your boyfriend will be joining you soon. Avada Kedavra!"

All through school Lily heard about how instant and possibly even painless the killing curse was. Green would overtake the scene and the victim would be drowned in the effects of the curse. They would be dead before they hit the floor.

And yet, it was moments after she heard the curse venomously spew from Voldemort's mouth, and still she felt nothing to suggest she had been ripped from the living plane. She had seen no green light from behind her eye lids, as if the curse had even taken place.

Suddenly, as if her limbs were re-awakened, Lily could move again. She collapsed to the floor from the sudden change in stance, but quickly found her wand in the grass beside her and leapt up to continue the duel. However, there was something blocking her way.

There was a clear shield before her, guarding her from Lord Voldemort. On the shield was the Hogwarts crest. Behind the shield there were two figures dueling, one with long silver hair and the other with a menacing laugh.

Beside her was James Potter.

He was using all his might to deflect the stray curses from Voldemort and Dumbedore's duel. He barely managed a grin at her. "Told you we were on our way."

Lily's relief was short-lived, as a curse bounced off the shield and knocked James and Lily off their feet. The shield was broken and Lily heard an eruption of noise from Dumbledore's duel. The shield had been powerful enough to knock out sound; where had James learned to do that?

The remaining power of the shield forced it to ram into the walls enclosing them. Lily saw as quickly the walls returned to their normal height. Voldemort was to wrapped up to notice that his cage had been unlocked.

James's eyes pierced into her in an expression so much more serious, more adult, and more frightened than Lily had ever seen. "Apparate home." He got up and went in to help Dumbledore.

The last thing Lily saw before she apparated was the image of James conjuring the patronus of a stag and sending it through the fence and into the darkness. She wondered where it was going, and why it had to go so soon.

She appeared suddenly in her living room. The shouts of curses and the blinding sparks disappeared instantly. Moments after Remus Lupin appeared in front of her.

"James told me to come over as soon as I could. What's happened?"

Lily looked around the living room and took in the burning fireplace, the familiar sofa she had bought with James, and all the moving pictures that she'd put up only a few months ago when she and James moved in. She was home, and with one of her best friends.

She fell to the floor in exhaustion and began to cry. Her heart beat was still thumping around in her chest as it had been all night, and she felt sick from it. The shock wore in.

Remus put his hands on her shoulders. "What the hell happened, Lily?"

She would have stayed and helped James in any way she could, but this time she knew she could be of no help. She could do nothing but sit in her little apartment while Dumbledore and James fought a battle for her. Slowly she told Remus of the night's events.

"And now… I don't know where James is. He looked so scared, Remus. I just don't understand it."

She glanced up into her gentle friend's eyes. "Voldemort promised to kill him," she finished, and then sobbed into her hand.

Remus sat in silence with her for some time before he finally managed to put his carefully chosen words together.

"James once told me that he was born to be with you. It was the most serious thing he ever said to me, noted with so much trust and sincerity. At that point I had to realize that the James the Marauders had known was no more. He had grown up before the rest of us, surprisingly, and had learned what it is to love and be loved. I don't think there's any possible way James can die tonight, believe it or not. He wouldn't leave you alone like that.

"People say that Voldemort kills whoever he sets out to kill, but James finishes whatever he sets out to do. And he is convinced he was born to marry you, and as he hasn't done that yet, I sincerely doubt he's going to let some demented wizard change that."

Lily absorbed his words and prayed for them to be true. Remus Lupin got up with the promise to make some very strong tea, and suggested she go lie down on the couch. She got up off the floor.

Just as she was making her way to the couch she saw a head pop into her fireplace. Peter Pettigrew's scared face stared back at her. "What happened, Lily? Did you—did you defeat the Dark Lord?"

She assumed Remus or James had found a way to warn Peter of what had happened. "I don't know, Peter. James is still out there with Dumbledore, I have no idea what's going on."

He looked worried. Lily felt sorry for him; she knew how much he cared for James and his other friends. She would never be able to fully fathom the depth of the Marauders' relationship.

"James will be fine," Lily said, ignoring the voice in her head telling her she was lying.

"C-contact me when he gets back, okay?"

She gave her word, but at that moment she didn't need to. Two people apparated into the room behind her. Lily spun around fast and took in the beaten, dirty face of her own James Potter, standing beside the also disheveled Albus Dumbledore. He ran over to her and hugged her as hard as he could.

Remus's words echoed in her head. "…he was born to be with you."

She had never been happier to be alive than on the night she almost died.

* * *

"… So that's why I didn't want to tell you about the Order, Lily. I knew what kinds of things we have to go through, and maybe it was wrong of me for wanting to protect you from that, but that is what I did. I regret that now. You deserved to know where I was and moreso you deserved to be allowed to help. I know that nearly killed you."

James stared at his shoes as if they would begin dancing on their own. Dumbledore regarded her behind his moon-shaped spectacles. "I'll have to go work out a few things with the Order now, as Voldemort was kind enough to tell me he has gathered a new following of giants, but before I go I must say how proud of you both I am."

"Thank you, sir," Lily said solemnly. Dumbledore's usual vibrance had disappeared. He seemed sad and tired.

"I've said it to James many times, and now I'll say it again. You are so very fortunate to have each other; your connection alone will get you through the tough times ahead of you." With that, he disapperated.

James stood up, eyes locked on his feet still. "I'm sorry I made you go through this tonight, Lily. I didn't even get to walk you home."

After all that happened, he was still sorry he had broken his promise to be there at her performance. She stood up and kissed him.

"I love you, James."

"I love you, Lily."

* * *

Lily sat up in bed that night, silently staring at the half moon outside her window. A thought had been bothering her all night: Voldemort believed the worst thing in the world was death. This misled thought could only mean that he, one of the cleverest wizards of the age, had never known what it is to have something to hold onto that was more precious than his own life.

She leaned back against the wall of her room that separated her sleeping quarters from James's. What would it be like to have never loved someone else with so much of your heart that it hurts? Without that feeling, what is the point of living? What is death when you have never had a chance to live?

Just before Lily fell asleep she had a breakthrough—she felt sorry for Tom Riddle. Not Voldemort, but Tom Riddle, the boy who had never had a childhood. Dumbledore explained this to she and James that night.

Tom hadn't grown up in the loving family James and Lily had. He had never had the friends Sirius and Remus and Peter did. He hadn't known what it felt like to have the trust of someone as great as Albus Dumbledore. All he had was his bitterness and hurt that turned into hatred and greed.

But in this world, those who seek power are never immortal. Their terror may stain the mind, but they themselves are destined to fall victim to the rise of a stronger power. One made of a more solid substance.

And this solid substance Lily was lucky to have, and with it she could live as long as she had to, to meet her destiny. With a brief thought of James Potter floating in her mind, Lily Evans closed her eyes.

She would have to brace herself for whatever would come next.

* * *

Taiyourshoes: Sorry it took so long. Happy reading for those of you who will have your copies of HBP in a matter of minutes! And yes, one of the sentences in the 3rd paragraph is straight from CoS so readers can see how history has a way of repeating itself. Happy reading! 


End file.
